News & Events

Bar Exam and Readers’ Course

Last week, Bar Council received the Report of the 5-Year Exam Review Panel chaired by the Hon. Peter Riordan KC. The report made 17 recommendations and 4 suggestions for substantial changes to the Bar Exam and the Readers’ Course. The changes are designed to ensure that the Exam does not unnecessarily restrict entry to the Bar and to increase the number of places in the Readers’ Course. Members can read the report (with some redactions to protect confidential information which I am confident are not material to an understanding of the report) here.

On Tuesday evening, the Hon. John Digby KC, Chairman of BCL and its CEO, Paul Clark, attended the Bar Council meeting to provide their quarterly update, including with respect to how they are managing the increasing number of vacancies and the expected departure of a number of floors later this year. The BCL model, which provides such great flexibility to our members has, on the flip side, some great challenges for those tasked with managing it. To this end, a BCL survey seeking member’s feedback on chambers and technology services has been sent to all members this week. I encourage you all to participate in the survey, which will help inform BCL’s future strategic direction. Click here to complete the survey. The Bar Council remains very focused on the Bar’s accommodation needs, and we are grateful for the assistance of John and Paul and the rest of the BCL board. This year has seen the appointment to the BCL board of Liz Bennett S.C. and Stewart Maiden KC, and I am happy to announce that on Tuesday night, Bar Council also appointed Sam Hay KC to the Board. This morning the Board elected to appoint Sam as its Deputy Chair.

On Monday, I spoke at the introductory session of the March Readers’ Course to welcome the 48 Readers who will soon be members of our Bar. They are an impressive cohort who will add to the Bar's increasingly diverse cultural makeup with Readers born across the world in China, France, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, and the United Kingdom. The first week has seen them attend sessions by Rowena Orr KC, Solicitor General for the State of Victoria, on the role of a barrister, Kathleen Foley S.C. and Kateena O’Gorman S.C. on written and oral appellate advocacy, and The Hon. John Middleton AM KC, Anthony Strahan KC, Sarah Porritt, Owen Nanlohy on conduct in and out of court. The Readers’ course is a huge undertaking that relies heavily on members who give of their time and experience and to whom we all owe an immense debt of gratitude. On Monday night, the Readers were also welcomed at a function at the Essoign for the Readers and their Mentors.